Masks and vaccinations are recommended. Plan your visit
At first glance, the giant see-through-erector-set-like structure seems to be a realization of one of Leonardo da Vinci's mechanical inventions.
Where: This exhibit is not currently on view.
Levitating on an invisible stream of air, a beach ball seems to defy gravity. If you try to pull the ball out, you can feel a force pulling it back in—the same force that keeps an airplane in flight.
Tilt a spinning bicycle wheel while you’re sitting in a swivel chair and—surprise—you’ll start spinning in circles, too. You can also witness the same phenomenon here by hanging a spinning wheel from its axle.
Where: Gallery 4: Living Systems
The visitor gives an initial twist to the pendulums with a protruding knob. Intuition says that the resulting motion of this system should be, if not simple, at least predictable. Intuition, however, does not work with this device since its motion is chaotic, extremely complicated and long-lived.
Where: Ray and Dagmar Dolby Atrium
Fluttering waves whirl around the edge, creating patterns of evenly spaced ripples.
Start one of these two pendulums swinging and soon you’ll see the other pendulum start swinging, too. Keep watching and you’ll see the two pendulums take turns, alternately swinging energetically and coming to a near standstill.
Where: Crossroads: Getting Started
Believe it or not, when objects roll downhill, it’s not their weight or size that determines their speed—it’s how their weight is distributed.
Draw hypnotically flowing patterns with a swinging table, and watch friction cause the patterns to slowly shrink along a spiral path.
This 3-D sculpture is animated when spun under a strobe light. The bloom’s animation effect is achieved by progressive rotations of the golden ratio, phi (ϕ), the same ratio that nature employs to generate the spiral patterns we see in pinecones and sunflowers.
This artwork by Norman Tuck demonstrates that a very simple system—a metal chain hanging from a motor-driven bicycle wheel—can generate complex behaviors.
Where: Gallery 2: Tinkering
Flashing lights create the illusion of motion.
Lift the handle to start this row of pendulums swinging, and then watch as they move in and out of a repeating series of mesmerizing patterns.
Where: Crossroads: Getting Started
Artist Scott Weaver has spent over 40 years painstakingly constructing this replica of the city of San Francisco out of toothpicks. Ping-pong balls added here or there wind their way through the model, visiting various famous sites along the way.
Where: Gallery 2: Tinkering
Sand falling through water creates turbulence and complex patterns.
Are the stripes spinning . . . or are you?
Use your hands and tools to create unexpected patterns in the sand.
Where: This exhibit is not currently on view.
Use your hands and tools to create unexpected patterns in the sand.
Where: Ray and Dagmar Dolby Atrium
A square wheel can roll smoothly—if the "road" is the right shape.
Magnets in the pendulum and the disks transfer energy back and forth, making the pendulum swing in unpredictable ways.
Where: This exhibit is not currently on view.
Fans simulate the swirling airflow in a thunderstorm and fog machines make the pattern visible, creating a miniature tornado that you can disturb with the wave of a hand.
Where: Gallery 4: Living Systems
Experiment with rotational motion (and collisions) here at one of our most addictive exhibits. Disks and balls moving on and across this spinning table swoop and veer hypnotically—and also reveal why storm systems often follow curved paths on weather maps.
Where: Crossroads: Getting Started
In this device, a motor turns a wooden snake tail. When the tail pushes the snake head, it changes the connections and the motor changes direction.
Where: Gallery 2: Tinkering
A twist of a knob sets water jets in motion, causing water in this giant cylindrical tank to spin. Soon, a tiny vortex appears at the surface, gradually swelling in size as it snakes downward.
Where: Crossroads: Getting Started
Discover the strength of an arch by building a bridge.
Where: This exhibit is not currently on view.